Humanitarian Aid(Angel and Demon on My Shoulder)

I had a friend mention that everything in (insert emergency situation here) was such a shame: to have a (insert natural disaster) in a country with a weak and ineffective government and poor infrastructure. As if things were not bad enough.

Is it too jaded to say that during a humanitarian crisis in a weak state the only nation accountable to the people in distress is the global nation of NGO’s, bi-lateral AID agencies and common men and women who are volunteering time, money and resources?

One could argue that this isn’t the type of event that destroys a government who isn’t doing much for their country to begin with.

Worse case scenario it’s an opportunity to take credit for the next 1 to 2 years of ‘free’ support and resources flowing into the country. A respite from deflecting the blame about government inadequacies and a time to restock on arms and leverage ‘rents’ from the business of AID that is about to boom in the nation.

Is this too jaded a view? Should I consider the bright side, simply thank whomever that it isn’t me and do what I can to give my money, time and resources to people with so much ‘need’ and so little state to fall back on?